The huge gap in achievement was revealed in a study by the Education Policy Institute (EPI) which looked at differences between pupils who spent the majority of their time at secondary school eligible for free school dinners - a key measure of poverty - and those who did not.

Children sitting in class (Image: PA Photo/thinkstockphotos)

• In Northumberland, they were 26 months behind by the age of 16, one of the largest gaps in the country.

The findings show that children from disadvantaged homes start to fall behind at an early age. At the age of five, Northumberland pupils from less wealthy families are 4.3 months behind other pupils.

And by the age of 11, the gap is nine months.

Researchers used Government statistics for 2016 to examine the average performance of poorer pupils and that of their richer peers.

Across all state secondary schools, including special schools, “persistently disadvantaged” children - those eligible for free meals for 80% of their time at school - were 24.3 months behind their wealthier classmates nationwide.

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Based on mainstream secondaries alone (excluding special schools), the gap has widened by 0.3 months since 2007, from 23.1 months to 23.4 months.

The report also shows the attainment gap between rich and poor pupils generally, for all types of state secondary school, now stands at 19.3 months.

Northumberland school children have been found to be at an educational disadvantage (Image: PA)

When comparing children at mainstream secondaries alone, the report finds this gap narrowed by three months since 2007, from 21.9 months to 18.9 months in 2016.

From 2007 to 2016, the gap between rich and poor children at mainstream primary schools, by age 11, had narrowed by 2.8 months.

The researchers conclude that at the current rate of progress, it would take 50 years to reach a point where disadvantaged children did not fall behind their wealthier classmates during their formal education to age 16.

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The findings also show that disadvantaged secondary-age pupils in the Isle of Wight are around 28.6 months behind their peers by the end of secondary school, while at the other end of the scale, the gap is 1.4 months in the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea, three months in Westminster and around seven months in the boroughs of Southwark, Wandsworth and Tower Hamlets.

Jo Hutchinson, the EPI’s director for social mobility and vulnerable learners, said the research showed that the “most persistently disadvantaged pupils in England have fallen even further behind their peers”.

“While some progress has been made with closing the gap for disadvantaged pupils overall, these pupils still fall behind at a rate of two months a year over secondary school,” she said.

“At the current rate of progress it would take a full 50 years to reach an equitable school system where disadvantaged pupils did not fall further behind their peers between the ages of five and 16.”

Shadow Education Secretary, Angela Rayner, said the findings were “deeply concerning but unfortunately come as no surprise”.

“If you cut school budgets and push out teachers, as the Tories have done, then life in school will become even harder for the most disadvantaged kids,” she said.

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A Department for Education spokeswoman: “We are determined to ensure that all children, regardless of their background, get the excellent education they deserve.

“Our data, which looks at the number of children who have been eligible for free school meals in the last six years, shows the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their peers has narrowed since 2011.

“But there is more to do. That is why, through the Pupil Premium, we are investing almost £2.5 billion of additional funding this year to support schools in raising the attainment of disadvantaged pupils.”